01/21/2021
Hello friends,
Yesterday morning was a rough one due to some interpersonal stuff, and I lost my late morning work time to managing my emotions-- thanks to my mini trampoline, Taylor Swift, and a steady group text with friends. Sometimes it's just like that, right?!
Unexpected stuff happens with the people we love, and it can really throw us off. I hear this from teens and parents I work with on the regular. It happens to me, too. This is part of being human.
Today, I couldn't just sit down at my desk, turn on some music, and get to work. I needed to complete the stress cycle ASAP. This is a process I learned from Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle by Amelia Nagoski and Emily Nagoski.
Even when we can't complete the stress cycle immediately, it's important that we do this ASAP. The book offers lots of great detail about why and how to release stress. But in short, some of the most effective ways to de-stress include: moving, breathing, laughing, connecting with others, crying, giving/receiving affection with a loved one, and expressing yourself creatively.
If this is resonating, if you're feeling the need to release stress, I invite you to pause and give yourself ~20 minutes to tap into one or more of these tools. (Hint: This is all of us. We all need to do this.) If you can't do it now, plan a time in the next 24 hours when you can. Completing the stress cycle is part of regular or maintenance self-care, AND it can be a tool for emergency self-care.
Breathing and trying to laugh with you,